Starting to get there


Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
10/05/2009 6:16 pm
I've been playing since the start of the year (brand new beginner, age 53) and I finally feel like I'm making some decent progress. Thanks for the comments in the forum and the lessons about "just hanging in there" because some of the stuff that seemed impossible at first is becoming playable, if not really sounding great yet.

Barre cords for example. I'm still just barely managing some shifts from the E to A based chords in (slow) time, but they're not sounding horrible. When I first started trying them several months ago, it was a joke.

My hand strength and flexibility have come a long way and that's probably the best part. At first I just laughed at the fret 2,4,6 stretch required for a blues shuffle in E. I had to literally pull my fingers apart to even try it, and then I couldn't hold it. Now I can do it "okay" most of the time even though I have to make some faces. I also don't get the cramping in the base of my thumb or forearm that I would get before, particularly with barre chords.

I need to put some more discipline into my practice time, but now that I'm starting to see some more meaningful progress, I think that will be a little easier too.

Just wanted to be another voice out there saying "stick with it" because it does get easier!

Bruce
# 1
Mike51
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Joined: 04/10/05
Posts: 67
Mike51
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Joined: 04/10/05
Posts: 67
10/05/2009 6:43 pm
Originally Posted by: Bruce J

My hand strength and flexibility have come a long way and that's probably the best part. At first I just laughed at the fret 2,4,6 stretch required for a blues shuffle in E. I had to literally pull my fingers apart to even try it, and then I couldn't hold it. Now I can do it "okay" most of the time even though I have to make some faces.

Bruce


Here are two tips that might help with the 2,4,6 fret stretch.
1. use a capo. Place it on the 4th fret and play the shuffle in E (G#). If that is still uncomfortable move the the capo up the neck until it is. Practice at that point, then move the capo down the neck 1 fret. This will gradually stretch your fingers. (The capo is an excellent tool in any stretching exercise to get you where you need to be in incremental steps.)

2. check the placement of your thumb behind the neck. If your thumb is directly behind your first finger your pinky will be limited in its range. If you move your thumb so that it is closer to the middle of your fingers you will see that the position of your hand changes slightly and that your fingers will be able to cover more ground.
# 2
Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
10/05/2009 8:24 pm
Thanks, Mike. Haven't tried a capo yet, but it does sound like a good idea and I'll pick one up. I definitely have an easier time with the shuffle when I move it up the neck and can play it in a different key.

The thumb point is painfully obvious to me already! I move my thumb more into the middle of my hand, say around fret 4, when doing that part of the shuffle otherwise I can't make the stretch at all. I'm not fast enough yet to make this move as quickly and smoothly as I need to, and I'd rather not keep it there all the time when playing the E and A part of the shuffle. So I still have some work to do. However, I'm pretty happy that I've made it this far. I can also tell a real difference between the frets on my Epiphone Dot (easier) and on my Martin acoustic (a bit harder) which I guess are using a slightly different length fretboard.
# 3
Mike51
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Mike51
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10/05/2009 9:04 pm
Here's another thing you might look into. Using the B at the 4th fret of the G string and the shuffle notes on the D string above. It's an inversion and just another way to play it. The F# (5th) is the 4th fret on the D right above the B and can be played with a mini bar of your first finger.

It is a shift of hand position and will take some time in getting used to but it's good to know. One of the great things about guitar is that there is more than one way to play something.
# 4
Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
Bruce J
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Posts: 54
10/06/2009 12:37 am
You're going to make me do some homework to figure this one out, Mike. But I like a challenge and need a lot more work on learning the notes anyway!
# 5
Mike51
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Mike51
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10/06/2009 3:04 am
Bruce,

I had to edit my reply. The F# is the 5th not 4th of the B major scale.
(B, C#,D#,E,F#,G#,A#).

There is nothing wrong with learning the notes and a little theory early on.

Learning the notes up to the 5th fret is easier than you think. If you can tune the guitar using the 5th fret, then you know those notes. The 6 string and 1st string are the same. If you know the open strings then you know the 1st and second frets... and it just goes on from there.

You can do a search for some free fret board trainers that you can down load.
# 6
Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
Bruce J
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Joined: 03/16/09
Posts: 54
10/07/2009 8:38 pm
I mapped out the whole fretboard on my computer one time on a long flight back from London. It was a pretty good challenge because all I really knew at the time was the tuning process and that the string order was maybe EADGBE or something like that. I eventually managed to get it all right despite a few false steps along the way. Picturing the piano keyboard helped a lot. Unfortunately I really don't spend much time on it now and need to be a little more disciplined to grind it into the old brain.
# 7
Mike51
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Mike51
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Posts: 67
10/08/2009 4:27 am
Thats good Bruce. Doing it by hand will help commit it to memory quicker than just looking at someone else's work.

Having the knowledge of how the piano keyboard is laid out puts you ahead of someone who does not. When I started I referenced everything to the keyboard because the sharps and flats are shown different than the natural notes unlike the guitar fretboard where 1 fret is identical to the next fret. ( I sometimes thought about painting the frets white and black to match a piano. of course it would get out of whack if you got away from standard tuning)

When you get to working with keys and scales you'll find it quicker to do WWHWWWH (major scale where W = whole step and H= half step) on the mental image of your keyboard than anyway else.
# 8
buffy136
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Joined: 08/30/08
Posts: 17
buffy136
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10/14/2009 9:27 pm
hi bruce, started at 46 never thought I'd get anything down..but here I am one year later and sure am glad I didn't give up and don't plan to any time soon...for 46 years my left hand did not do much beside picking up a chip in a bowl, dang it was lazy :( ...had to show it how life works :eek: ..was not easy but I can tell you that it is now having the time of it's life ;) the secret practice practice practice ..go slow if you have to
# 9

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